Jedi on Naboo
by judgelinch
Summary: Palpatine's got a problem - the Jedi are aware of his true identity. Pre-TPM. Palpatine x Amedda, pre-slash.


_Note: In my fanfics, Mace Windu has a double specialty: he has being studied the Force healing, but because of his fierce nature has chosen the path of a warrior. Why do I think so: 1) Mace was T'ra Saa's student, and she was a healer, 2) Mace helped a Hurikanian native with the Force when the latter fell off a cliff and was injured, 3) and the main reason: Depa stabbed Mace in the stomach and cranked the blade 33 times, and not only he stood on his feet, but still outdid the undefeated Kar and conquered the city - what is it but writer's nonsense… sorry, a demonstration of excellent healing skills?_

X X X

A Jedi, who hadn't taught a Padawan, could be promoted only for unprecedented feats on the battlefield. These exceptional cases were extremely rare. And today, the council just dealt with two such candidates.

The first speaker was Aqinos, who resurfaced from bacta on this occasion and was now lying on a hoverstretcher. It was he who submitted to consideration the candidacy of Mace and Saesee - after they'd asked him for it.

"I don't deny knights' professional suitability. Everyone knows that Knight Tiin is a dashing warrior and pilot, Knight Windu is valiant warrior and healer. But! Personal qualities of the Jedi Windu and Tiin do not allow to consider them worthy of the rank of master. Knights are dour, angry, hard-fisted, taciturn, avoidant, peevish, and merciless body training, to which they expose themselves, can't compensate for their constant evasion of the spirit development. Spirit dreariness and continual rage, breaking from the inside, aren't appropriate for a Jedi Master. Proneness to conflict and violence of our candidates hinder the achievement of a qualitatively new level, the level of masters. I vote against it."

The councilors acknowledged Count's correctness, and Aqinos' petition was rejected. The Sunezi returned to the hospital, under T'ra Saa's supervision.

"This should have been expected", the senior healer mumbled, "my Padawan just doesn't want to understand that only prowess isn't enough, length of service is also required. He isn't even thirty!"

Aqinos believed that it was up to the handle, because Mace had almost pulled him through from the dead. He snatched slimsy Aqinos from manipulators of Gorm the Dissolver, who was considered the best warrior of the Renegades and this day was about to fill up the bloody record with two Jedi. Mace himself wasn't too pleased with the success: he had to quickly heal the injured Aqinos with the Force, and he missed the skedaddle cyborg. Ultimately, Arkanian revolution was suppressed, the surviving rebels were executed, and Dominion has remained in power. And very, very few dissenters survived - the Republicans cut nearly the entire cyborg army, specifically - in thousands! – eliminated the scientists working in laboratories, belonging to the Renegade leadership. The glorious Gorm was left intact - he joined the bounty hunters, having escaped from Arkania.

And soon there was a commotion - on Naboo!

Between the Gungans and humans there was a low intensity confrontation for many years – like a long dormant tumor, that suddenly began to grow rapidly and let metastases. Above the town of Tarda Gunga humans sprayed in the water some pesticides that caused a fatal disease to the natives, which was called precisely gungan fever. The human government contended in the media that a break-down had occurred, but Gungans were convinced that this was genocide, concerted with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Ministry of Health, and signed personally by His Majesty the King. Suspicions of Gungan population were increased by the following factors: firstly, human allergy to these pesticides was limited with itchy red spots, and secondly, humans didn't even have initiated a criminal case against the crew of the crashed ship and port management.

Police dispersed Gungans' pickets with water cannons, but neighbors regularly lapsed in a fight with injuries to both sides, here and there small groups of young right-wing Gungans roughed humans up; Gungans threw eggs and poured paint over monuments of His Majesty the King and all his most august predecessors, whatever came to hand. An abscess of the civil war grew up on the well-known resort, idyllic planet.

Therefore, the government appealed to the Senate - by Palpatine, of course - asking for help in resolving the situation and avoiding the conflict.

Three of the Jedi were selected for this task.

"They don't want to promote us due to the factor of "How many I chopped, how many I slashed", Mace Windu sarcastically snarled, swiging off a cup of bread juice in the temple canteen.

"I've shattered 37 ships. On Arkania", Saesee added, as he knocked down enemy ships before the last operation. "But it's not enough for them. They will give me the rank of master only when I prove that I can resolve a conflict in a bloodless way, without a single corpse." He shoved a spoon of canteen glop in his mouth and chawed, holding a plate on his knees - because on the table his beetle-crushers rested. His broad dark face was frozen in surprise - and how to hustle through this, not putting a lightsaber in motion?

These complaints about the excessive demands placed upon them by the Council were designed to ear slits, hidden behind the head tentacles of Kit Fisto. He was chosen for the task on Naboo - for being an amphibian.

"Senate diverges on vacation, by the way", Mace spoke with an air as if he wanted to encourage them with this.

"Do I care?" Kit couldn't help but said.

"He flies back home!" Saesee seized the point, but immediately wimped out, "So what? Of course, I'll try to figure out where's his house, but we can be sent to another hemisphere. Absolutely not an opportunity to finish him off", he said, staring at Mace, and Kit recalled that Saesee was able to read minds - and not everyone thrived this art, though everybody has learned this.

Kit has never palled around with the goons, and felt a fifth wheel. He caught only that the shaved and the horned ganged up on some Nabooian, and obviously for a long time.

"And by the way", Mace rasped through his teeth, "where did you go after the meeting?"

"To my steady."

"While you were lying in bed with Unduli, I had heavily been putting in the way of things and studied the situation on Naboo!"

"You're the boss!" Saesee wasn't impressed.

"It all started", mournfully, but with anticipant gleam in his eye, Mace began, "with local elections to the Senate. When the votes were counted, he made a celebratory hunt, shot at anything that moves, and, among other things, shot a Gungan. After Palpatine's hunt a stir began. For humans, has shot a Gungan - it's like a wild boar. If our bureaucrat had been put away in jail – but no, just the opposite. Gungans tried to deal with it on their own - and they provided him with guard, and declared them terrorists, who was caught - those on the bullpen. He went to Coruscant and wears out the senatorial seat with his pants, and the Gungans continue to bicker with humans."

All this led to an escalation of the conflict, the apotheosis of which was the recent deadly pesticide humans sprayed in the sea waters above the Gungans' settlement.

"And I'm thinking", Mace shared, "Gungans just welcome our initiative."

"Wrong is that the Jedi obey the government, not the will of the Force!" Saesee Tiin slammed his heavy fist on the table.

"You speak like Dooku!" Mace flew into rage. "For Dooku - easy to say! Dooku has the county, but you, Saesee, how would you live, if our Order weren't sustained by taxpayers? If we hadn't grow into the state structure, Saesee, we'd have to stalk farm markets, show telekinesis tricks, hoodoo doctor and live on alms!"

X X X

Palpatine delightedly junketed through conservation areas, pot-hunting. After the stuffy gym on Coruscant and narrow air tracks between skyscrapers he could finally have a splurge. Hunting season hasn't started yet, but high officials allowed themselves to poach at their own sweet will. Amount of trophies Palpatine was rat-holing made his mother swell with pride, and Darth Maul - with delight (he was allowed to play with horns, hooves and tails), added work for droid butler and appalled Amedda.

Palpatine's best friend, colleague and Senate yes-man wangled an invitation to Naboo, like he had once accompanied him to Champala. By that time, Mas' relationship with his wife Iona definitely soured, and he tagged along with Palpatine, just not to see her. He brought along only his butler TK-37 and two IG-86 for protection. He lived, of course, in a hotel, in a room, specially adapted to his body needs, where temperature and humidity, necessary for amphibian Mas, were maintained. He dropped to Palpatine's. The commotion with Gungans didn't touch his soul.

X X X

On that day Gungan leaders council assembled under the blue. The delegates had to decide whether to declare a general military draft. Well-fleshed Gungan dignitaries decided not to wag two stone fat and didn't take the trouble to gather to any single center, and organized just a holoconference.

Firsthand, the Jedi decided to settle moods in Tarda Gunga, the very city where most people recovered like flies.

The trio came to see the mayor Mopra. It wasn't a reception day in mayor's office, but the Jedi quickly convinced everyone with the mind-trick, from the first encountered guard and up to Mopra himself, and get an exclusive audience. They stood in a holoprojection field, side by side with the seated Mopra, close to Hutt in size.

Some represented underwater urban sprawls, others - the settlements on dry land. While the Gungans were soapboxing, the Jedi quietly regretted that were not so mighty in the Force to mind trick the devil's dozen bosses on opposite sides of holoprojectors.

Finally the monks were given the floor.

"Venerable representatives, the enemy is in your waters, who has offered to the Gungan people an affront, which can be cleaned only with blood", Tiin heralded. "Notorious among the Gungans Senator Palpatine!

"Hunter came back!" Mayor of Otoh Ursa went ballistic.

"When weesa Gungans tree cut down, an animal or a fish kill, weesa front of them bow, apologize and say dat without dis no way - eat need!" Mopra rumbled.

"We sincerely respect the desire for harmony with nature, in which Gungans have lived for centuries", Mace said. Saesee and Kit stared at him with great respect - all the way from Coruscant to Naboo Windu composed and crammed this speech. "But truly barbaric human nation, who think they have a right to destroy forests, pollute waterways and kill living things for fun, who spawned Senator Palpatine, prosecuted your relatives who tried to take revenge on the murderer, and not him for his dastardly murder of your unarmed congener."

"Weesa no forget", flewsy, with loppy lower lip, mayor of Otoh Jahai grimly nodded.

"First of all I would like to know whether the Gungan leaders council agrees to avoid bloodshed, when we bring you Senator Palpatine's head?"

Mopra couldn't resist, gurgled with excitement, and his guard brandished their energy lances in agreement. Holographic assessors raised the cry.

"One human for a Gungan isn't enough!" some shrieked. "How much weesa die from da poison in water!"

"If weesa goin' to war againss humans, even more Gungans kick da bucket!" others wailed. "Weesa agree - hunter Palpatine's head, weesa take on faith 'bout da accident, but thesa responsible be held trial! Then, weesa not goin' war!"

"We swear by the Force that we'll persuade the Government of Naboo humankind to order a thorough investigation of the incident with the pesticide release above Tarda Gunga and give the perpetrators to justice." Mace jerked his clenched fist above his head.

"Yousa not vote", Mayor of Otoh Mandassa yelled, "weesa vote!"

Six Gungans voted for peace at the cost of one human head and trial of perpetrators of the accident. Six Gungans - against, they wanted to wage war. Mopra hesitated. He was on the very first vote for military draft, but under the mental pressure of three Jedi he reluctantly voted for a compromise.

"Thank you, Mayor", Mace slightly bowed, "then it's time to swim for Palpatine - to administer justice. The Force will help us track down Palpatine, wherever he is. But human authorities wouldn't provide us with a bathyscaphe. As you well know, for his congeners Palpatine is a respectable man who hasn't committed any crime."

"Weesa give yousa bongo."

"From where we set out?"

"Katura leads yousa in da dock." The trio darted off for the guide Katura, but Mopra stopped them, "Stop, Jedi, wherea go! Yousa", he jabbed his finger at Saesee, "return bongo widout a scratch and bring hunter's head. Weesa set dis thinkin' mug up onda pin, so da all can see. Return widout Palpatine's head – Gungan puttin' yousa head onda pin. Yousa undaastand?"

Saesee stood stood bolt upright and saluted. Kit Fisto repeated after him.

"And weesa no let da doctor. He stay, weesa has maxibig of jobbin' to deesa. Dis to yousa and yousa exact comein back", the Gungan finished with a nasty grin.

The fact was that Mace Windu foolishly admitted what was his second specialty. He was immediately dragged to the hospital, where there was no room to swing a cat, and involved to work, previously having been depraved of his lightsaber.

X X X

One day, when human had a hankering for hunt and Chagrian wanted to splash in the ocean, foaming Jedi rushed on senator's traces and learned from rental station strappers that Palpatine and Amedda have taken on hire a bathyscaphe and sailed to depth to harpoon fish.

"Ill do this work for myself. For my own pleasure", Saesee Tiin croaked, leaning back in his chair and squeezing maximum speed from the double front guns the bongo was equipped with.

"You don't care that they'll look for Palpatine? And when humans find out that you killed him, they'll chop your own horned brainless head?" Kit Fisto asked.

"Your job is to do and not to think", Saesee snapped.

"It's your and Mace's plan", Kit muttered. "Because of you I'll rot in a cell…"

Gungans' waters were protected with infrasound units emitting vibrations that repelled giant predators from underwater cities and oil fields. Palpatine led a vessel in such distance and such depth, where real opees and sandos harbored. Amedda looked forward to limber up. He felt cramped in the stuffy submersible like in the highest skyscraper on Coruscant. Palpatine couldn't have developed an inveterate diver in himself, and although Mas persuaded him to pull the wetsuit and to grab scuba gear, he was hoping that he still doesn't have to dive.

A bongo raced behind them. Danger rang in the Force, Palpatine put on speed and began to wag, but the vessel kept up.

"Gungans?" Amedda suggested.

Detecting painfully familiar oscillations in the Force, Palpatine froze in his chair.

"This isn't Gungans, Mas..."

Palpatine maneuvered. Bathyscaphe flounced like mad. Bongo fired a volley – the bathyscaphe shook, half of the aft was torn off, and water gushed into the hole.

"Leakage!"

Bathyscaphe foundered. Palpatine quickly struggled into the scuba, and Amedda pulled him to the hatch. Powerfully pushing down with legs and paddling with one hand - the other pulled Darth Sidious, who was frantically clutching him - Mas swam away and hid in the middle of underwater coral forest, frightening away a flock of colorful fish. Jumping in the hatch, Mas' lungs closed shut and gills have opened, but Palpatine immediately discovered that he has wrongly fastened his scuba, from lack of oxygen he turned blue and remained conscious only because of great Force, taking himself off, so saying, into hibernation mode.

Stirred water cleared. Bongo came up to the fallen forward bathyscaphe, its snout buried in the mire. Saesee was clearly uneasy. He hadn't spotted Palpatine's presence in the Force - but he likewise didn't sense him back on Coruscant! How to tell if senator was killed or not?

"Kit, move now in the hatch, swim in their rattletrap! Chop off the head and bring it!"

Fisto swam off, slipped into the hole with scorched edges and walked along the flooded bathyscaphe. Saesee was sitting in the bongo, listening to the Force and kept in touch with Kit's mind.

"Senator Amedda is amphibious as our Fisto, and could swim, but how is the Sith?" Saesee thought.

"They are away, the gateway is open", Kit informed. Saesee nodded darkly – as he expected.

"Come on in corals, the Sith might have a scuba", he ordered, slightly turning the bongo and redirecting searchlight beams.

Fisto swam, hands pushing underwater bushes, faceted eyes looking around, at any moment ready to activate his waterproof saber and cut off the heads of the fugitives.

Senator Amedda's camouflage color was of no help. Green blade flashed, and Mas pushed himself from a small reef grown over with corals, and swam for dear life, but he had to drag Palpatine and his oxygen flasks.

A shark. Kit slashed with his lightsaber, but only slightly seared the shark. Fight between the fish and the Nautolan went face to face - Saesee was afraid to fire a volley, being able to kill his fellow. And it would be good - Saesee thought - Palpatine and Amedda swim here, and the shark too, so many creatures with one shot... but who will bring Palpatine's head, for he had no wish to dive!

When the fish corpse, carried over by the stream, floated with belly ripped open, attracting scavenger fishes, Kit Fisto looked back. Palpatine and Amedda disappeared. Spotting a cave nearby, Kit rushed there, swum along two meandering corridors, frightening away fish, jellyfish, sea anemones and water snakes, and saw a kreetch eel in one of the branches. Kit backed up - there was no place to turn around, swum backwards, and out of the cave sped kreetch, fiercely swelling. His relatives began to fish out from everywhere.

Amedda skirted the bongo from the other side, so Saesee hadn't seen, latched on to the roof plate and hung on, using all four sucker cups - on palms and foot bottoms, that were closed on the dry land and worked only in water. He has placed Palpatine's body between himself and the bongo hull, hindering him from falling down.

You won't talk under water. Amedda couldn't hear Palpatine in the Force, and he, in turn, didn't understand the lethorn language. Yet Mas could see that human was on his last legs. He moved off half-dead Sidious' useless mask - so that it still covered his nose from the water - and pressed his lips to his, gills hard working for two.

At this point Fisto jumped into the hatch, shimmied into the cockpit.

"Where's the head?" Tiin sternly met him.

"There is full of kreetches!"

"Then why are you schlepping around a lightsaber?" Saesee barked.

"Jump yourself into the water, so daring! Slay single-handed a bunch of kreetches!"

"I'm terricole! And my saber goes down from the water!"

"If to sit in a cozy booth, then you, but if to jump in the water to kreetches, than me?"

"We promised Palpatine's head to Gungans!"

"Kreetches have eaten away your Palpatine, along with Amedda!"

"Did you see?" Saesee spattered.

"This is clear!"

"How do you prove it to Gungans?"

"Mind-trick!"

"Work nut, frog!" Tiin roared. "You'll convince one Mopra, but those by hologram?"

"We'll specify the coordinates of where we've drowned them! Mopra will send his men to check, they find the leaky bathyscaphe, and they believe us! Even if Palpatine is still alive, he won't oar to the coast from here!"

Kreetches circled at the bottom of the bongo, made sure that the gateway was battened down, and swum away.

Bongo brought the senators out. Once the ascension was over, Amedda closed his gills and breathed with his lungs, the sun was in the eyes. Mas' suction cups closed. Palpatine stirred under him, and pulled off the mask.

"Drop at least this dead weight!" Mas croaked, helping Palpatine to get rid of oxygen cylinders.

It dawned on Saesee.

"They are on top!" the monk yelled. With a roar he bounced off the top hatch cover, and Mas just managed to jump down and dodge. He treaded water, but Palpatine was hanging on his back, hugging his waist with his legs and holding on to broad shoulders of his dipnoan comrade.

From the hatch loomed Saesee's head, crowned with twisted horns, and then his powerful hands. Spotting swimmers, Tiin threw his lightsaber, but the blade, against its owner's wishes, turned back in flight and made for Saesee's head like a boomerang. Saesee dodged, deftly caught his sword and began to Force-pull Amedda and its rider to him.

Palpatine stretched his hand of vengeance and hit Saesee with the lightning. Writhing and gasping, Iktotchi spunk down into the water in a fountain of spray. Palpatine squeezed Mas' shoulder, he ducked, and Sith intensified the charge. Dazzling blue broken lines cut through water, denting in twisting buffed-up body of the unlucky murderer. Saesee sank like a stone, suffocating, and lost consciousness.

Saesee's dropped lightsaber jumped out of the water and, spinning a wide arc, arrived in Sith's stretched palm.

"Bathyscaphe is ours", Palpatine contentedly spoke.

Mas swam to the smooth hull and shook his head. There was no way to climb up.

Palpatine got off Mas' back, swam a bit aside, balled his legs and, like a missile, flew out of the water, gently landing on the bongo roof, next to the hatch. Waving his hand, he pulled Amedda out of the water and placed near.

Kit Fisto darted to the gateway. A moment later he disappeared in the abyss.

Palpatine and Mas entered the bongo. Sith sat behind the steering wheel, watering the floor and control panel in flows, gathered the Force, increased his body temperature, and he threw steam. Amedda just blinked. As quickly restoring his 36 and 6, already dry Palpatine hissed,

"The second one is amphibian?"

"Yes, a Nautolan."

"I won't mind if he stays in his natural environment."

"Can you imagine how much we'll have to pay for bathyscaphe? I don't think they'll pull it out, repair it. They'll force us to buy a new."

"We'll foist them the bongo and make believe that it's the bathyscaphe", Sidious snapped.

"The Force is with you", Mas piously agreed.

Palpatine reved up and sped toward the shore.

X X X

Sweating, Kit brought scorched, breathless Saesee to Mace.

"Accept the work!"

"What it was?" Mace astonished, he hasn't yet collapsed from exhaustion just by the Force - he healed hundreds ill Gungans, and there was no end.

"Lightning. Caught and got him into a trance, so he's lasted up to you."

"Storm?" overworked Mace asked, poking his finger up toward the force field bubble of the underwater city.

"Palpatine!"

Mace's face fell.

"Why yousa heal heesa?" asked Gungans with electropoles who oversaw the unlucky Jedi. "Kibosh thesa! Bongo ditched - axe-chump! And yousa workin' in weesa hospital all yousa miserable life!" They looked at each other and induced, "Da war to be!"

And they took Kit in mayor Mopra's menacing eyes – to report to council leaders that the plan failed.

Fighting off the suffering Gungans, Mace shouldered lifeless Saesee's carcass, came to the bed ward door, put him down on the floor (free beds haven't left, and patients were placed on mattresses on the floor), and, putting his heart and soul and all the skill, began bringing him back to life, healing his burns. A smell of singed flesh spread out. When Tiin coughed up all water from his lungs, and muddy look of blood-soaked small eyes under a strong frontal bone became a little conscious to get immediately distorted with unbearable pain - Mace said,

"That's what. I will analgize you, but you at this time try to reach Kit's mind, and tell him that we ask for the second attempt."

Saesee suddenly got better. Mace turned into a live transmitter, pumping out Saesee's pain and throwing it into the Force. Saesee knew that this session could only last for a short time while Mace has enough strength to pump his pain out, and then his agony comes back. Kit, who was receiving jeering and at the same time angry rebukes from the mayor and dozens of holographic Gungans, suddenly shuddered - Saesee's voice rang loudly in his head:

"Say: We promise the next time to find and decapitate..."

"They won't believe, they just won't believe that Palpatine also has the Force!" Kit Fisto sadly raised his hands and all eleven of head tentacles, and he looked like a Neti. "They'll think that we attribute supernatural powers to him to justify our own weakness!"

"Tell them that he had drowned, and colo clawed fish drowned our bongo!"

Kit in despair echoed this to the Gungans.

It was impossible to confirm or refute Fisto's assertion, remotely whispered by Tiin.

After such a failure Gungans, of course, didn't dispense a transport to the monks, that could bring them to Theed. Kit was sent in the same hospital, as a body snatcher. He scrubbed floors and bore the bedpan. Hand skin was shabby from messing with disinfectants, cheeks itched unbearably. Kit bitterly regretted that he hadn't abandoned Saesee. Indeed, precisely because of him he had to swim back to Tarda Gunga - the wounds inflicted by the Force can be cured only by Force. And Saesee wouldn't have lasted through the way to a human settlement – Kit would have to swim for a few days.

"Once again I had underestimated Palpatine", Mace thought. He also bitterly regretted that he promised the Sith head to Gungans. And the result: he was in the hospital, easing with the Force Gungans' suffering from fever! Pills weren't enough, doctors and nurses lost their legs, and everybody looked at Mace like he was a walking source of a cure. In order to "rest" from the main duties, Mace scrubbed burned skin from the Iktotchi and stimulated the growth of the new with the Force. Only thanks to the great Force he managed to prevent sepsis. Gungans didn't have bacta, it was imported only by humans. Mace spent nights in the store room, among the mops and slop pails, and ate canteen wish-wash, giving the half to Saesee.

Mace's and Kit's lightsabers were kept in police chief's office, and Mace kept reckoning, what chances were to steal their weapons and hijack a bongo. For example, if we succeed and get to Theed, maybe we persuade human leaders, but - not Gungans. Gungans will be ruthless. First they decapitate non-transportable Saesee, as Mopra had promised. And then they lash out at humans.

Mace decided to stay in Tarda Gunga and continue to be useful to local population, thereby proving his reliability, and to sent Kit Fisto to humans. Of course, the event was risky, given the traditional Nabooians' distaste for non-humans, and some - albeit very remote - amphibian Kit's similarity to a Gungan. It's possible that they will simply refuse to listen. But to leave Kit in Tarda Gunga and sail to Theed himself was also impossible. Kit didn't know how to heal - Gungans lose nothing, decapitating such hostage as he.

Ebb meant the nightfall. Tarda Gunga lighting was taken to a saver mode. Kit crept to the Gungan on duty from behind, firmly grasped him, not letting to escape, pressed on a particular point on the neck, and the duty boy fell into a coma for about three hours. Fisto hurried to the main police station, jumped over the fence (it was impossible to climb - the current was switched on in the night), walked around the building to the shorter side, chose a second-floor window. Stretched out his hand and sent an impulse. The glass shattered. Kit jumped inside. A stamping was heard - duty boys rushed to the noise. Kit had to crawl back - he leaped from the window sill, somersaulting in the air, and sprawled on the wall above the window, propping with hands and feet to the wall. Gungans peeped, turning their heads, but didn't think to dodge and look up - no one could sit on a bare wall, without any point of support! The guards spread out - two remained in the building, and two more came out to comb the area. Those that remained in the area checked the entire floor - no one, and went to check other rooms. Fisto went back into the corridor, began to look for the boss' office. Stopped before an armored door. Sensed his saber in a strongbox. The strongbox wasn't from cortosis, but from usual steel. Cortosis was imported only by humans. Kit closed the contact with the Force, and green beam broke out from the hilt, burning a hole in the strongbox. Kit reached his hand – the saber jumped in the strongbox, spun and leaped through a seared hole, flew to the door, burned the lock and jumped into the owner's outstretched hand.

Waiting until Gungans return to the site and tell the comrades that the territory is clear, Kit made his way back through the broken window and over the fence.

He walked through the force field bubble of the city and started swimming. Fisto swum for three days and three nights, stopping for a short halt in underwater caves and eating fish. On the fourth day he came ashore at the port of Moenia and took a the shuttle boat to Theed. He had passage money - Kit kept safe his mileage allowance credit chip as an apple of the eye.

And Mace at this time explained to the Gungans.

"Yousa Jedi comein' sayin' - yousa help, but actually a loss! Green robb police, horns ditch bongo, and yousa jobbin' out!" was the Gungans' verdict.

Fisto was eager for an audience to His Majesty the King himself, but could achieve only an audience with the Prime Minister. However, this blimp in office also got into the spirit. After all, statistically on Naboo there were only 30% humans and the rest were Gungans.

Head of Moenia Port, to which the ship that spilled pesticides was attributed, bribed all the higher authorities and supervisory committee a while ago, so they continued to use old, out-of-repair vessels, that would have been long scrapped. The accident occurred only because of that pesticides, sulfur, coal were shipped in bulk, spilling the chemicals in the water and floating metal scrap broke down in the middle of the voyage. And the money allocated for modernization have long been stolen.

However, if the matter with pesticide spraying has become a publicity and threatened with such devastating effects, scapegoats were found quickly: handymen, dockers, crane operators. They were put on trial.

Gungan representatives were invited to witness in the case of criminal negligence, and when all data were collected, Gungans were allowed to speak in court. Precedent, I must say, was incredible. Never before humans had reported to Gungans for the caused damage. Typically clumsy Themis has worked with unprecedented speed.

Gungan part declared the rejection of militaristic intentions, but, again, everyone understood that peace was fragile as glass. However, it has been made, no matter how fragile, even in an indefinite, and obviously short term.

Using the remnants of his travel allowance, Fisto hired a bathyscaphe and raised Mace and Saesee on the surface. The latter by the time, due his mate's cares, was already on his feet, and Gungans immediately drew Saesee, who had drowned the bongo, to socially useful work. What a valuable worker, able to move heavy equipment by waving his hand.

The Jedi got tickets for shuttle spaceship to Coruscant (yes, for bloodless corpseless task they weren't allocated a ship from Temple property, and traveled by public transport) and sat in the waiting room of Theed spaceport.

And at this time in one of the bars there was the following blue-sky thinking:

"We must go to the police. I'll be a witness."

"Mas, and the evidence?"

"Iktotchi's lightsaber."

"Lightsabers are for sale. We'll be told that we had brought a stolen weapon and perjure."

Palpatine gave Saesee's broken lightsaber to Khameir – to put together correctly. "I'll buy a crystal for you", the senator said, "but you'll construct it manually." And Darth Maul was sitting with the assembly instructions, studying different lightsaber models. Spare parts were not so difficult to acquire, but the crystals were rare and expensive - few smugglers had courage to travel to the rugged snow-covered Ilum wastelands. You had to fight back local predators and sometimes the Jedi, who considered these occurrence their fiefdom. Few smugglers came there - and fewer still came back.

"Palpatine, are the Jedi still alive?"

"Hardy. Thorn in the Force", Sith hissed, sipping his ouzo through a straw.

"You handle it. I saw you in action. But I'm deaf to your Force. I'm a witness, who can't be left alive."

"Mas, the Jedi don't care for you", Sith lazily drawled, studying his new manicure (previous was destroyed by his own lightning).

"And... can you see it in the Force about me? Why are you so sure that I won't be bodily harmed?"

"You're not their rival", just as bored, Palpatine explained.

"If you know that they are alive, then you have yet to meet them..." Mas drawled, and, lifting and curving his lethorns, he flung them around Palpatine's neck. Sith smiled sourly and patted him on the back. Amedda wanted to support him, but didn't know how. "May the Force, as they say…"


End file.
